Vote: Obama, illegal immigration and the economy

Reports say President Obama may use executive authority to enact an “immigration reform” of sorts, protecting some 5 million illegal immigrants from deportation and allowing them to work here.

In a future column, I’ll take a closer look at the costs and benefits to the economy of the estimated 11 million to 12 million undocumented immigrants in this country. The short answer is that they are a consequence of our insatiable appetite for cheap, exploitable illegal workers and the failures of both governance in Mexico and elsewhere and the destabilizing effect of NAFTA.

“Reform” is a cause of progressives, the media and some in business. Many Republicans consider it amnesty for lawbreakers. I suspect a significant number of Americans are satisfied with the status quo, even if this permanent underclass in the shadows carries many pathologies. Allowing more immigrants to work legally would be fairer and bring other benefits. It would also potentially add millions to the competition for higher-paying (but still low-paying) jobs.